


EASE.

by petitseok



Series: 내 편이 돼줘 (BY MY SIDE.) [4]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Caregiver!Minghao, Caregiver!Mingyu, M/M, Non-Sexual Age Play, Regressor!Soonyoung, Regressor!Wonwoo, this is some of the good stuff!!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-24
Updated: 2020-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:07:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24354064
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/petitseok/pseuds/petitseok
Summary: strangely enough, falling into his headspace was easy when it wasn’t forced by his anxiety. he slipped just because he wanted to, and he found it much easier to do in the presence of someone who was like him. his littlespace brain thought this stranger was safe, even if wonwoo was in public and without mingyu.// wonwoo accidentally regresses in public and meets another little.
Relationships: Jeon Wonwoo/Kim Mingyu, Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi/Xu Ming Hao | The8
Series: 내 편이 돼줘 (BY MY SIDE.) [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1577752
Comments: 15
Kudos: 118





	EASE.

**Author's Note:**

> hi!! summer is here and i finished this idea !  
> here are Some Things:
> 
> 1\. minghao is called myungho for like 90% of this rip  
> 2\. also i can't get the idea of cg!hao teaching little!sy mandarin phrases out of my head so that happens too. i didn't get like, a whole sentence in for the sake of being realistic from wonwoo's pov, and i added a little reference guide in the end notes for ~education~  
> 3\. apparently i am physically unable to write Anything in a reasonable word count. im sorry??

wonwoo liked working from home. 

it wasn’t very difficult for his boss to agree to it when he was first hired, considering his outstanding mental health issues. after all, he was an editor and writer, and his presence at an office wasn’t necessary on a day-to-day basis; he came in to hand off or pick up certain paperwork or attend a mandatory meeting, but that was the extent that his co-workers saw him in person.

working from home minimized the possibility of wonwoo facing complications and took out the stress of commuting, reducing his expenses for travel in the process. he worked better without distractions, and his quiet, still apartment was perfect for getting his work done.

mingyu traveled to an office for his work every weekday, leaving wonwoo in the comforts of their apartment alone. the younger man often barraged wonwoo with a deluge of whiny text messages when he had free time, singing sweet and encouraging words to his partner in the form of a notification chime. 

being at home did come with its downsides. wonwoo had to strengthen his social skills by talking to his friends by phone or meeting them for lunch. mingyu often dragged him to dinners with his own coworkers to get him out a little more. 

he wasn’t very good at going out on his own. the city was loud and he was often afraid of talking to strangers at stores or even restaurants. mingyu constantly took him out on weekends, not only to spend time with him, but also just to get him _out._

there were days, though, when wonwoo’s work finished early and the house was just a bit _too_ quiet. mingyu wouldn’t be home for hours, and he didn’t want to read or watch a show, so his brain was a little fuzzy for no reason.

on one of the days, he felt like he _needed_ to go out by himself. the apartment wasn’t working for him; he needed some noise and the sight of someone else and something nice to do. 

he started by going on a walk. although it wasn’t too cold, he slipped on a simple jacket over his t-shirt and stepped out, aiming for the nearest park to their building. he remembered absently that he and mingyu mostly went on walks there while he was in littlespace, save for the occasional picnic or late-night date. 

many dressed-up workers passed by him, likely returning to their work after a late lunch. wonwoo imagined that he looked a little out of place because he was dressed so casually, old enough to be heading towards a job of his own.

but his tasks were done for the day unless someone contacted him with more work to do, and he felt that he could have used the free afternoon that he seldom received. when he returned home, he would be sure to get ahead on future assignments. 

on his walk, wonwoo paused to look at some of the stores, not intending to go inside them. he found them interesting, though, so he slowed his gait to observe the things that stole his attention: stylish looking clothes, funny antiques, and in one case, a rack of different types of colorful sweets.

one place in particular caught his eye. it wasn’t exactly a store; it was a pottery studio.

in the display windows were unpainted pottery pieces like mugs, plates, or little statues of cute animals or things like boats or birdhouses. there were examples of finished pieces as well, and wonwoo was fascinated with the colors that were chosen and how well they were painted. 

the light reflected off the glossy, finished surfaces and something deep in wonwoo wanted to create something pretty like that. this was what he wanted to do; it sounded much more fun than just sitting in the park for hours.

wonwoo took out his phone, chuckling at the unread messages mingyu had left him since the last time he checked it.

> **gyu ♡ 14:13**
> 
> ㅠㅠㅠ i cnt believe u ate all my leftovers how cruel ~_~;
> 
> ig its worth it if you had a good lunch ;-; <3
> 
> **won 14:54**
> 
> that’s disgustingly cute of you to say
> 
> my work finished so i went out and i found this cool place
> 
> [won sent a location!]
> 
> i’ll be here until you return for me ㅠㅠ

having caught mingyu up to speed, wonwoo pushed open the door of the pottery place, pleased with the little bell that chimed as he did. wonwoo hadn’t been to a place like this in a very long time, but he remembered the basics of how it worked.

along each of the walls were shelves of the unpainted white pottery bases, separated by type and labeled with their price. the work tables where customers could paint were in the center of the room. the only other people in the studio were two males deeply engrossed in picking out their pieces.

a woman greeted wonwoo as he entered, asking if he’d like an explanation of how things were run, which he accepted.

the woman showed him around and explained that he could pick out anything he wanted and pay once he was done painting. she also showed him the bottles of paint and explained how the colors changed once they were fired and how he needed to apply several layers so that it came out solid. 

wonwoo nodded with the onslaught of information, eager to make something for himself. he was shown the fine tip bottles, handed an apron and palette, and left alone, the employee giving her name and urging him to ask for help if he needed to.

left to his own devices, wonwoo decided to check if mingyu had given him a reply.

> **gyu ♡ 14:56**
> 
> at least he misses me ㅠㅠㅠ
> 
> pottery?? thats very ambitious of u bby
> 
> **won 15:11**
> 
> that’s a rather big word for you, gyu
> 
> **gyu ♡ 15:11**
> 
> ㅋㅋㅋ oki mr im secretly a big baby jeon :*
> 
> lmk when u finish maybe i can walk u home like a gentleman?
> 
> also pls make me smth ㅠ i can even pay u back if u buy more than one ^-^
> 
> **won 15:13**
> 
> ok, and we’ll see
> 
> you’re clearly the baby, honey ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
> 
> **gyu ♡ 15:14**
> 
> ( T_T)＼(^-^ )

“soon-ah,” a different voice distracted wonwoo from mingyu’s placating _im sorry, i love you_ texts. “you can only paint one, remember?”

wonwoo looked up, spying the pair he had noticed when he first came in. the taller of them who had just spoken had long black hair that had been chopped into a mullet, wearing a stylish looking red sweater underneath his apron and black jeans. he looked a little intimidating, even from the back.

his arm was wrapped protectively around the waist of the man beside him, a shorter brunet wearing a striped shirt that covered his hands, not unlike the pattern of wonwoo’s t-shirt. he was holding two pottery pieces: a tiger and a little plate. when he looked up at his friend, wonwoo could see the roundness in his cheeks.

“please? hyung, i really want two,” he begged earnestly, whining. he almost sounded like a child with the way that he talked, and it made the little in wonwoo perk up. “can i? please, please, pl—”

“no,” the other stood firm, and _oh,_ it reminded him of mingyu. “pick one, love. just one. i have a little frog, see?”

he did. the frog made an appearance between them, and wonwoo thought it was very cute. 

the seemingly younger of them was not having it, though. he glared at the little piece of pottery and spent some time debating his decision.

wonwoo moved closer to them, seeing the wall of animal pottery just beside them. most of the smaller (and less expensive) things were closer to the bottom, so he knelt down to get a good look at them.

there were so many cute options for him to choose from. there was a cat, a dog, a fish, a dolphin, a lion, a dragon, a horse— _wow._ little won was being very vocal about which ones he wanted to paint, an unforeseen consequence of this activity. 

it’s not like the two next to him were any help. the taller’s straining urges for his companion to _pick one_ affected wonwoo, and he hardly noticed himself slipping into his headspace as he continued. 

petulantly, the short man beside wonwoo stomped his foot once, his adorable white sneakers making a muted noise against the wooden floors. “fine. i wan’ the tiger, then,” he declared childishly.

the taller was finally relieved. _“hǎo, hǎo._ come on, let’s get some colors. put the plate back.”

just as they began moving away, a whine previously stuck in wonwoo’s throat resonated in the room, and he lost his balance, falling back on his butt. 

first, he was frustrated at having fallen over. soon, though, he was also embarrassed about the sound he had made, in front of strangers no less. he seldom regressed in public, and it had always been because of his anxiety. he’d never been confronted with this before, one leg and an arm in headspace while the rest of him tried to push through and stay _big_.

unfortunately for wonwoo, the small man noticed, and he spun around to face him. “oh no, are you okay?” he asked, fretting over him. he curled a hand into wonwoo’s jacket and helped him sit up, inches away from his face. 

wonwoo felt like the protagonist of a drama, but he also was feeling progressively little as the stranger pouted, fixing wonwoo’s hair and patting his head when he was finished. “i’m glad you're okay,” he nodded kindly.

that tipped him over the edge. little won practically forced him to slip once a head pat was initiated, and there was nothing wonwoo could do about it. without thinking, he pushed into the touch, and the other’s eyes sparkled at the reciprocation of such a small affection.

strangely enough, falling into his headspace was easy when it wasn’t forced by his anxiety. he slipped just because he wanted to, and he found it much easier to do in the presence of someone who was like him. his littlespace brain thought this stranger was safe, even if wonwoo was in public and without mingyu.

their moment was cut short, however, when the third party in the room pulled the lovely stranger away from wonwoo by the back of his shirt, hugging him from behind like he might try to escape. 

“soonyoung!” he hissed. “apologize, right now!”

soonyoung wiggled, “hyung, i think he’s like me!”

when he was released, soonyoung ran over and placed his ceramics carefully on the nearest work table. he then approached wonwoo, getting on his knees and asking carefully, “are you a little?”

before he could stop himself, wonwoo nodded. soonyoung gasped, “are you regressing? do you need help? i must have made it worse, i’m sorry.” wonwoo didn’t know which question to answer first, so he just nodded again, shy under the heat of their gazes. “can you talk?”

“soon,” the little was warned. 

soonyoung looked up at the other stranger, confused. then, he turned back to wonwoo, quickly trying to make amends, “it’s okay if you can’t. sometimes people don’t like talking at all.” he took wonwoo’s hand in his as an encouragement. “do you?”

wonwoo held his hand as well, finding his voice soft and unwilling to go very far. “won... is really quiet sometimes. i- i’ve never met another little before.”

“that’s okay,” he assured him, patting the back of his hand. “you’ve met me now.”

his taller friend— wonwoo still didn’t know his name— crouched down to their level, his steadying hand splayed across the back of soonyoung’s neck. “what’s your name?”

wonwoo looked down, “my name is wonwoo. my dada calls me wonie.” 

soonyoung gasped, “you have a caregiver?”

wonwoo nodded. 

“my name is myungho,” the strange man introduced himself. “i’m soonyoung’s caregiver. should we call your dada, wonwoo?”

wonwoo nodded again. telling mingyu he was in littlespace was the most important thing he needed to do. one of his rules was to always tell him.

soonyoung tugged on myungho’s sleeve, whispering quietly, “baba, can i help take care of him?” 

myungho responded, but wonwoo couldn’t understand him. soonyoung smiled at whatever he said, though, and tugged at wonwoo’s arm. “c’mon wonie, i can help you!”

the couple assisted wonwoo in standing up, walking him towards the table where he sat down, shoving his hands up his jacket sleeves.

“are you sure you’re alright?” myungho asked, resting a hand on his shoulder. 

wonwoo nodded, timidly taking out his phone and unlocking it. “‘m okay, really,” he promised the caregiver. 

myungho glanced at the screen of his phone and saw mingyu’s contact. “is that your dada?” he questioned. “should we call him?”

“that’s him,” wonwoo confirmed. myungho clicked on the contact and pressed ‘call.’

mingyu picked up on the second ring. _“hello? hyung, how’s the pottery going?”_

“gyu-hyungie,” wonwoo babbled, reaching out and grabbing myungho’s hand for support. he was glad the employee was in the back and couldn’t hear how vulnerable he sounded when he talked. “wonwoo-hyung is little.”

a pause. and then, with concern, _“are you okay? is someone with you or are you still by yourself?”_

“dada,” he confided, suddenly shy about calling mingyu that in public, “i met another little.”

myungho leaned closer to the phone sitting on the table. “hello, i’m seo myungho, a caregiver. my little and i met wonwoo here. we’re the only ones at the store.”

a longer pause, _“oh, okay. it’s nice to meet you, i’m kim mingyu.”_

“i’m soonyoung!” the second little added. he was immediately shushed, but mingyu laughed.

 _“hello~”_ he called. _“wonwoo, do you need me to pick you up? were you upset?”_

“hyung wasn’t upset. i just really wanted to play. and paint. they have lots of animals here and soonyoung is going to help me.”

_“are you going to let myungho take care of you? is he nice?”_

“they’re nice, don’t worry, gyu.” soonyoung nodded along with what he was saying. 

_“okay, okay. if you want to stay, then you have to listen to him. be on your best behavior for myungho.”_

“yes, gyu. i love you.” he promised. soonyoung was starting to beg for attention, so wonwoo didn’t hear everything mingyu said after that. the other little crouched in front him and started playing with wonwoo’s fingers. 

_“i love you too, sweetheart. myungho, can you go ahead and save my number in your phone? if wonwoo gets upset, call me immediately. please take care of him, let him pick something small to paint and help him when he pays for it. thank you so much.”_

myungho takes the phone, moving a little away from his littles. soonyoung giggles at wonwoo who reciprocates the action. “it’s no problem, i’m sure we’ll have lots of fun. i’ll talk to you later, yeah?”

the call ended and soonyoung was free to continue berating wonwoo by launching questions at him, “so, won, how old are you?” 

little wonwoo tried really hard not to say his _actual_ age like his big side wanted him to, so he concentrated and counted on his fingers. he wasn’t _too_ deep, but he was playful and wanted to paint! he _wanted_ to be little even if he was in public.

“i’m four years old,” he declared proudly.

soonyoung took his hand again and shook it around excitedly, “i’m your hyung! i can be your big brother!”

carefully getting soonyoung to stop manhandling wonwoo, myungho input softly, words intended for the younger little alone, “soonie says he’s around five or six. he’s responsible, so you can trust him to watch over you.”

myungho wasn’t very good at appealing to his little side; all wonwoo felt when he said that was his big self nod in satisfaction like he was content with not being burdened with taking care of another little. little wonwoo didn’t exactly care one way or another how old soonyoung was, as long as someone took care of him while he was out and about.

“what’s your favorite animal?” was the next thing soonyoung wanted to know. “i really like tigers.”

“cats… cats are really nice,” wonwoo answered. he liked cats because they were soft and didn’t bark and pounce on him like dogs did. 

mingyu preferred dogs, but he frequently took wonwoo to cat cafés to pet kitties and drink hot chocolate.

“we should get you a cat, then,” soonyoung declared, already skipping over to the display and gathering up the different types. myungho seemed a little distracted and didn’t pay him much attention.

three cat figurines no bigger than wonwoo’s hand were placed in front of him. one had small eyes and a fluffy tail; another had bigger, rounder eyes and a skinny tail; the third was curled around itself and asleep. wonwoo always liked the fluffy ones from the cafés, so he reached for that one first. 

soonyoung took note and asked if that was the one he wanted to paint, and when he nodded shyly, he took the others away and started looking for some colors. 

myungho finally paid attention to the boys again, shifting closer when he noticed wonwoo zoning out while watching soonyoung’s retreating figure. the younger little took his hand when it was offered to him, pulling at his fingers absentmindedly while waiting for the other to return.

soonyoung returned to their table juggling multiple bottles of paint, looking very proud of himself. he set them out in rainbow order, too: orange, golden yellow, yellow, three different greens, brown, black, and white.

“i didn’t know which _lǜsè_ baba would want, so i got different kinds,'' he explained. “and i got _chéngsè_ because i want my tiger to be that, but wonu can choose _any_ color he wants.”

wonwoo was a little confused, but just as he was about to reach for the pretty golden color, myungho chuckled, “soonie, why don’t you tell wonwoo what colors he can use so he can understand.”

blinking slowly, soonyoung looked at the bottles again, trying to figure out what he had done wrong. it seemed to dawn on him after a moment, and he reached out to wonwoo, taking his hand and pointing to each of them again. 

“that one is orange. i want to use that one for my tiger, but you can use it too if you wanna. there’s the yellows, and then those greens are for my baba, and then the others for the other stuff. you can just ask me if you want something else ‘cause i’m in charge of getting colors. got it?”

wonwoo got some of it— well, he got enough. he reasoned he could use anything in front of him and ask soonyoung to get him something else if he so wished. soonyoung's pretty smile assured him that no matter how much he understood, he would help him.

so the little nodded, already reaching for the yellow that he wanted, looking around for the brushes and his painting palette. they seemed to appear magically in front of him, myungho setting up their station for them as soonyoung settled beside wonwoo with his tiger.

from wonwoo's point of view, it felt like soonyoung was more in charge than the actual caregiver among them. it was probably because myungho kept to himself, providing wonwoo with silent comfort when he needed it and only speaking up to keep soonyoung from doing something too brash.

in littlespace, soonyoung really seemed like a hyung to wonwoo. he doted on him like he was a little brother and was pleasantly affectionate to him. sometimes his presence could be a little suffocating, but it didn't take much for him to settle back down.

he liked talking. a _lot._ specifically, he liked talking to wonwoo, asking him questions he could answer with a simple nod or shake of his head. he showed his excitement about the mundane things that little wonwoo liked and constantly complimented him on his pottery cat.

his enthusiasm, especially when it came to taking care of wonwoo, encouraged him to stay in his headspace rather than pull out of it. it also enabled his quiet streak, complementing the older little's chatty nature.

"you really don't like to talk much, huh" he mused to himself, carefully filling in a stripe on the body of his tiger, the only one filling the silence of the small pottery store.

wonwoo looked up from his golden kitty, a little perplexed. he wasn't bothered by what he said, but he was curious why soonyoung was interested in something like that.

the relatively harmless comment earned soonyoung a light smack on the back of his head from myungho, and the little immediately stomped his feet. "'m _sorry,"_ he whined. "i was just wondering."

wonwoo just kind of stared in wonder at their interaction. myungho was a really firm caregiver. he always made soonyoung apologize if he said something even remotely impolite and scolded him, usually in what he was beginning to realize was a different language.

soonyoung was a very careless little, though, so it made sense to wonwoo. he hadn't known him for very long, but he could tell that he often did things before he thought about them, so the extra authority that myungho gave him was probably helpful.

in contrast with myungho, mingyu was extremely gentle with wonwoo, but in contrast with soonyoung, that was the kind of guidance he needed.

soonyoung leaned closer to him and said softly enough for only wonwoo to hear, "i'm sorry for bothering you about it. really. it's okay."

wonwoo just smiled. "it's okay, soonie. 's just hard." he finds stringing his words together hard when he's shy or sleepy, and since soonyoung leads most of their friendly conversation, he doesn't want to interrupt him.

"ohh, okay. don't worry. my baba just got frustrated, i think, but if you're okay then it's okay. do you want a different color for your nose?"

myungho hummed from where he was applying a second layer to one of the legs of his frog, "won, you can do the details of the face while the rest of it dries."

soonyoung gasped, "do you want to use pink for the nose?"

when wonwoo nodded excitedly, thrilled with using a different color, soonyoung pulled him up, tugging him towards the wall of paint. there were a lot of shades, but he settled with a soft baby pink that reminded him of kitty noses.

myungho poured a little onto his paint palette and gave him a new, smaller brush to use. he carefully filled in the figurine's nose and ears while soonyoung continued to chat with him, applying his own pink paint.

“i have a tiger stuffie,” hoshi declared. “his name is hoshi because it means _tiger gaze_ and that sounds really cool.”

wonwoo thought of his stuffies in his littlespace box at home and he missed them. he only had a few because big wonwoo was rather insecure about having any out, but he cherished them. some of them were well-loved, especially his favorite cat stuffie that he had been carrying around since he started regressing.

“my stuffie is yangi,” he contributed with a soft smile. “i love yangi ‘cause she’s a cat ‘nd i like cats.”

“ohh, that’s awesome, wonu!” he giggled, pausing his work to grin at his baby brother, “you’re so cute~”

wonwoo blushed and looked away from his new friends, looking for his yellow paint brush again so he could start another coat of paint.

myungho finished first, and the two littles marveled at his work. his frog was light green, and he had managed to paint some darker spots along its back. it had yellow eyes and a pink tongue. the detailed lines were very well done. 

soonyoung, having just started his third and final coat, marveled at it, eyes sparkling. wonwoo liked it, too, leaning closer to inspect the details of the frog’s face. 

“baba’s is so good,” soonyoung whined to himself, placated only when myungho complimented his progress on his tiger.

“you’re doing good, too. just finish your last coat of paint and we’ll be finished.”

sitting between the second little and his caregiver, soonyoung objected, “but wonie is only on his second!”

wonwoo, still leaning over soonyoung’s arm to look at myungho’s frog, looked up at his companions at the mention of his name, fingers curling into the sleeve of soonyoung’s shirt. 

myungho smiled at his confusion, wonwoo having tuned out what the others were talking about. he reached out to ruffle his hair gently. “would you like some help with your kitty, wonwoo?” myungho offered.

looking between his cat figurine and soonyoung’s tiger, it registered that soonyoung was closer to finishing than him. “yes please,” he agreed politely. 

he was rewarded with another head pat from soonyoung, the older little returning to his work, right hand reaching up and grabbing for a brush, taking wonwoo’s with him. “baba is really good at helping,” he mused. 

“i’m glad you think so, baby,” myungho said, settling into the stool on wonwoo’s right. 

wonwoo focused on his cat again, but he didn’t let go of soonyoung’s sleeve, little headspace appeased at having something to knead at. the other didn’t mind at all.

while wonwoo concentrated on hot cat’s golden fur, minghao finished the details for him, working efficiently and occasionally offering the little advice. 

“don’t forget the ears, darling,” he reminded him quietly as soonyoung exclaimed that he was finished. “just do those and you’ll be finished.”

mingyu didn’t call wonwoo _darling,_ but the endearing name made his face flush coming from myungho. the caregiver’s voice was naturally quiet and the way he talked to wonwoo made him feel like he was precious. 

“thank you,” he said, grateful for the help he had given him. thanks to myungho, he finished at the same time as soonyoung and his cat figurine looked very cute. 

“baba, baba!” soonyoung whisper-shouted behind him. myungho combed back wonwoo’s hair while looking at soonyoung to see what he wanted.

the older little held his figurine up proudly. then he declared something in a different language, and wonwoo didn’t understand, but he heard him say _chéngsè_ again and a different word right after that wonwoo liked the sound of. _lǎohǔ._ he echoed it quietly to himself, testing it out. 

that made myungho giggle. his laugh tinkled and sounded sweet; and it made wonwoo laugh too. _“nǐ de lǎohǔ,”_ he agreed between bits of laughter, absentmindedly rubbing wonwoo’s arm.

“i worked hard on it,” soonyoung boasted. “right, baba?”

“you did, baby, it’s lovely.” 

wonwoo wanted to be a part of the fun, too, so he made grabby-hands at the black and orange figurine, “hyung’s tiger.”

soonyoung _beamed,_ grin the widest it had been their entire excursion, and he handed the tiger to wonwoo without a word of complaint. “i can be your hyung?” he asked enthusiastically, cooing when wonwoo stroked the tiger rather affectionately. 

the younger little just nodded. he didn’t see what the big deal was since soonyoung was the only other little he had ever met and he was older than him in headspace. he like his company, so it only seemed natural for him to start thinking of soonyoung as his brother. 

he wasn’t sure how big wonwoo felt about that idea, but at the moment, it didn’t matter. he was sure soonyoung just felt satisfied that he made such an impression on a shy little like wonwoo. 

eventually, soonyoung asked if they could go pay for their figurines, and myungho agreed. he took a moment to look around their table and decided that they should clean up first.

since he was in charge of the colors, soonyoung put the bottles of paint away, cheerily skipping back and forth from the shelves to their work table. 

myungho and wonwoo took the palettes and brushes to the sink, rinsing them off and setting them back in their places.

once the space was clean, soonyoung bounced in place with his tiger, waiting for myungho to bring him up to the counter. 

unfortunately for him, though, myungho took the tiger and his frog. “soonie, stay with the table,” he requested, and when the little opened his mouth to protest, he added a sharp, _“zuò,”_ that made him sit obediently.

when he turned to wonwoo, however, his demeanor softened again. “do you have your wallet?”

he blinked, racking his brain to remember what his wallet looked like and where he kept it. he shoved his hand in the pocket of his jacket and pulled out his little leather wallet, holding it up for myungho. “this one.”

the caregiver smiled, “go get your cat and we’ll go pay together. then we’ll call your dada.”

as they walked up to the counter, myungho grabbing the employee’s attention, wonwoo wondered if mingyu was getting off of work soon. he wanted to see him again. even if he really like myungho and soonyoung, it wasn’t the same as it was with his dada. 

the lady rang up wonwoo’s cat first, complimenting his work and asking if he enjoyed it. the little said that he did as politely as he could, and myungho helped him count the bills he needed, allowing wonwoo to hand them over himself. 

the employee took their figurines and explained that they would be available for them to pick up after a few days. myungho left his phone number with her in case they needed to be contacted.

and just like that, wonwoo had finished painting his little cat figurine. 

soonyoung seemed sad as myungho called mingyu, dejected that their impromptu play date was coming to a close.

mingyu picked up instantly, and wonwoo was so surprised he laughed into the receiver. 

_“oh, i thought something was wrong,”_ mingyu admitted, breathless. _“are you enjoying pottery, sweetheart?”_

“i finished!” wonwoo announced. “it was super fun!”

off to the side, soonyoung was talking quietly to myungho. wonwoo was happy to have a little private moment to talk with mingyu, though his free hand tangled itself into his shirt to hold onto something. 

_“that’s good! what did you paint? something for me, i hope.”_

“not for you, silly,” wonwoo laughed, satisfied with mingyu’s sad _aww._ “but i can share. it’s a surprise, though.”

_“i’m sure you did a wonderful job, anyway, my sweet. i just finished my work, do you want me to pick you up?”_

“okay,” he said quickly. he couldn’t wait to see him again. “i can wait here.” 

_“that’s alright with me. just let me talk to myungho.”_

the phone switched possessions. myungho talked with mingyu, probably about wonwoo. the little waited patiently until his phone returned, and he pressed it against his ear.

 _“okay, wonu, i’ll be there soon. just hang out with them until then. is that okay?”_ wonwoo said that it was. _“love you, baby.”_

“love you, too!” he replied, giggling until mingyu ended the call. 

at first, wonwoo expected soonyoung to be energetic and clingy while they waited for mingyu, but myungho pulled a second phone out of his pocket— which was quite the magic trick in wonwoo’s eyes— and pulled up a kid-friendly app, handing it to his little. 

the reaction was fast. as soon as he had the device in his hands, soonyoung quit fidgeting and chatting, tucking himself into myungho’s right side and occupying himself with it. 

wonwoo didn’t want to play any of the games on his own device. besides, he didn’t know how to use it that well and mingyu didn’t like him to be on his phone too much when he was in headspace. 

so, sitting on the other side of myungho, wonwoo mimicked soonyoung and leaned into him. he tried to fold himself to fit like soonyoung did, but it was more difficult because soonyoung was shorter than him.

myungho noticed his efforts and raised his arm, placing it over his shoulders to pull him closer. wonwoo hummed happily.

the store miraculously stayed empty while they waited. it was silent save for the sound effects that occasionally pinged from soonyoung’s phone. 

wonwoo watched him play his game that was all about colors and shapes. he thought it was really impressive that soonyoung got so many of the questions right because he didn’t know some of the answers himself. 

he supposed that he knew more since he was older than wonwoo. headspace wonwoo didn’t know about things like that. 

when he got tired of watching soonyoung, wonwoo watched myungho instead. he was swiping through social media, but it wasn’t one that he recognized from watching mingyu’s phone. 

he couldn’t read any of the characters. he couldn’t read hangul super well, but these didn’t look like hangul at all. 

wonwoo finally realized that the language was the one that myungho had been speaking with soonyoung.

“what does that say?” wonwoo whispered because he only wanted myungho to hear. 

“it’s chinese,” he explained. 

wonwoo’s mouth parted in an _oh._ that made sense. “do you know chinese?”

“i’m from china, so yes.” myungho sounded amused, endeared by his curiosity. “soonyoungie knows some, too.”

he let out a _woah,_ this time. “is myungho your real name?” he asked shyly, hoping a question like that wasn’t too forward. 

“no, that’s just my korean name. do you want to hear my real name?” 

soonyoung was looking at them curiously, but he didn’t speak up even as wonwoo said that he did want to hear it.

 _“mínghào,”_ he pronounced slowly.

wonwoo repeated it carefully, trying his best to match the tones. when he looked up at him for confirmation, the caregiver smiled. “that’s perfect, darling.”

wonwoo wanted to burrow into something at the praise, but with nowhere to go, he ended up nuzzling at minghao’s chest. 

he felt proud that he knew minghao’s chinese name. it showed that he liked him enough to share it with him. he was also relieved to have an explanation of why soonyoung said funny things sometimes.

minghao continued to scroll through various posts and soonyoung asked to play a different game, so for several more minutes, they were content with their own distractions.

the door to the pottery store opened with another delightful chime, and wonwoo looked up to see mingyu shuffle inside. 

wonwoo wiggled out of minghao’s hold, almost tripping over his stool trying to get to mingyu. he collided into the taller’s chest with a surprised _oof._

mingyu’s arms wrapped around him, and he immediately felt his fingers brush through his hair, soothing any of his worries about being separated from him. 

the employee of the store emerged from the back and smiled. “hello! can i help you?” she called to mingyu, seeing him occupied with her last customer.

“unfortunately, no,” he chuckled, the sound reverberating in wonwoo’s chest. “i’m just here for this one.” he pat wonwoo’s back.

the lady nodded kindly. “of course, i won’t interfere,” she promised. “please let me know if you need anything.” she disappeared again, leaving the four to themselves once more. 

wonwoo was thankful no one came in while they talked. they would have looked peculiar. minghao introduced himself to mingyu and they bonded over being the same age or something like that before they chatted about taking care of littles, something neither of them knew much— if anything— about until they met their partners. 

wonwoo, funnily enough, didn’t listen very well to what the caregivers talked about, likening it to mindless adult stuff. he still hung onto mingyu, though, cheek presses against his shoulder. 

across from him, soonyoung hugged onto minghao’s arm. he seemed to listen more, but he mostly stared admiringly at mingyu a lot, sometimes smiling at wonwoo and trying to tell him something. 

the sudden noise of sometimes three people talking at once made his head feel bad, like he was underwater. he tried not to whine at the sensation and instead fixated on the things that kept him calm like mingyu continuing to stroke his head or the feeling of mingyu’s dressy button-up bunched up in his hand.

“oh, by the way,” minghao said, reaching over and cupping soonyoung’s face so that his cheeks bunched up cutely, “this is soonyoung, my little. say hello, baby.”

“hello, mr. mingyu!” he chirped adorably. mingyu laughed again. “thank you for letting me take care of wonie. i’m his hyung now!”

“you did a good job, soonyoung, thank you. i’m sure wonu appreciates it too.”

wonwoo glanced at soonyoung with a faint smile of his own, “t’ank you, hyungie. i had fun!” 

“can we play again sometime?” the older little suggested, tugging on minghao’s arm. “please! wonie can come over and we can play games or with my cars!”

unexpectedly, wonwoo spoke up, “hyung has cars? toys?” he didn’t know that other littles got to keep a lot of toys with them. wonwoo never minded having less in his own house, but he couldn’t always go to joshua’s apartment just to play with colorful blocks that weren’t even his.

“yeah! ‘nd if you come over, i’ll share _all of them.”_ soonyoung stuck out his pinky in promise, and wonwoo was almost apprehensive of it, but the lure of soonyoung’s companionship and toys was too much.

the two littles pinky promised each other, and their caregivers shared a look. now they had a commitment to keep.

“i’m sure we’ll work something out,” minghao assured. “but soon, i think we should let wonwoo and mingyu go home.”

distraught, soonyoung turned to his caregiver. “do we have to?” he whispered, and minghao said that they did. 

once outside of the store, the couples parted, the littles waving at each other until they were each swallowed by the crowd. 

mingyu walked wonwoo home, their arms linked. along the way, wonwoo talked about his new friends and how nice they were to him. 

mingyu talked a little about work, but it wasn’t nearly as interesting as wonwoo trying to remember how to pronounce _lǎohǔ,_ even though he still didn’t know what it meant.

he talked about soonyoung and minghao until mingyu opened the door to their apartment. catching sight of their house, wonwoo detached himself from his caregiver and ran inside. 

he went to their bedroom and took his littlespace box, freeing yangi from her cardboard prison and making sure the rest of his stuffies were comfortable. 

since he had a lot of fun at the pottery store and met a new little and didn’t want to come out of headspace, wonwoo changed into his pajamas to be more comfortable, somehow tugging off his jeans and then putting mingyu’s t-shirt on backwards. 

said caregiver was waiting in the kitchen when he sprang out of their room, yangi tucked under his arm. 

“hi, daddy!” he slid into mingyu’s arms, the other surprised by his enthusiasm. 

“what’s up, champ?” he greeted him, ruffling his hair. “do you want to stay little tonight?”

“yes please! can wonu stay small?”

with his little still clinging to him, mingyu shuffled to their bedroom to change out of his work clothes. he noticed the tag sticking out underneath his chin and smiled. “of course, sweetheart.”

wonwoo giggled, an angelic sound, “thank you, dada!”

**Author's Note:**

> things soonhao said:  
> hǎo (好) — good  
> lǜsè (绿色) — green  
> chéngsè (橙色) — orange  
> lǎohǔ (老虎) — tiger  
> nǐ de (你的) — your  
> zuò (坐) — sit 
> 
> the cast expands! thank you reading <3 (happy 5th anniversary carats ^-^)


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